"The Nausea Of Seeing The Celtics Rise Again"

First off that is a direct quote from the writer of the article, a die hard Pistons fan Jamele Hill. I do not know her. LOL

Fellow Celtics haters enjoy. Its one of the rare times you will be able to read an article about the Celtics by a Celtics hater on ESPN of all places.

Two things defined my childhood: Beverly Cleary and the Boston Celtics. One I loved. The other I hated with every human fiber.

2. 1987. I was 12 and a huge Pistons fan. I just knew it was our year, just as I knew E.T. was real. Game 5. Celtics. Boston Garden. Eastern Conference finals. Larry Bird stole Isiah Thomas' friggin' inbounds pass with a couple of seconds left, passed to Dennis Johnson, and the Celtics won the game (and eventually the series). I had a nervous breakdown and spent two straight days listening to Robbie Nevil, flicking the lamp in my room on and off like Glenn Close in "Fatal Attraction." Bad times.

So you can only imagine how distraught I was when Danny Ainge, who ranked fifth on my "Celtics I Hate More Than Rutabaga" list, actually pulled off the Kevin Garnett trade. I had that same terrible, sinking feeling I had the time my mother busted me for staying out two hours past my curfew with my high school boyfriend. How was I to anticipate that Agent Smith would covertly go to the movie theater to see if we really had gone to see "Sister Act 2"? If only I had known the name of the song that Lauryn Hill sang to help save St. Francis Academy, then I wouldn't have spent three months of my senior year as a P.O.D (Prisoner Of Denise).

Only I've come to realize Boston's resurgence isn't nearly as vomit-inducing as I thought it would be. In fact, the Celtics have rejuvenated me as a sports fan.

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We think being a sports fan is only about loving your team, showing loyalty to them through success and failure, and having our lives enriched by incredible, athletic achievements.

Those are fine ideas, but not quite reality. The warm and fuzzy sentiments are only a small part of sports. The bigger part, the best part, the most fun part, is the hatred.

If you're any kind of fan, you are just as emotional and fired up when your rival loses and gets humiliated as you are when your own team pulls off a thrilling win. It's sports ying and yang.

I like the fact that the Celtics are the team to beat and I will tell you why.

Would you rather have D-Wade and the Heat? Howard and the Magic? Lebran and Cleveland? Remember reading all the immature smack from Artest/O'Neal and the rest of the Pacers when they were good?

At least Celtic fans know how to act for the most part and you would have a hard time finding 2 more players with better character than Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett.

There has to be an enemy right? Matter of picking ones poisen really.

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There are all levels of enemies.

Some you might trash talk
Some you might rumble with
and some
well you get the gist of where I am going.

Its like the Hatfields and McCoys. As long as there is any reason for a conflict it will be exacerbated when you have a long history of conflict between the combatants.

For a long time Pistons/Lakers fans this conflict goes back 30 plus years. It was quiet for a few years, but the now the old wounds have been brought to the surface and the scar tissue is starting to tear.

Personally I would rather rumble with anyone in the East other than the Mean Greenies. Too many bad memories, that best be kept lying like a sleeping dog, at least from my perspective.

The rise of the Celtics is certainly good for the NBA. Some competition in the Eastern Conference is also good for the league.

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One of our biggest downfalls this year is the lack of nightly competition in the east. Portland and LA have progressed so well because they play against superior comp, which ultimately helps progress rather than hinder it. Some of these EC GM's need to get it together, we are too unprepared right now because they suck so bad. We need better sparring partners.

I guess you guys are right about needing better comp. Personallly I'd rather walk all over our conference. But respect our oponent.
Pistons seem to play better in the underdog role anyway. They're more intense when they can slay a dragon.